Verbena hybrida cultivar xe2x80x98Kieverstarxe2x80x99.
The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Verbena plant, botanically known as Verbena hybrida, and hereinafter referred to by the name xe2x80x98Kieverstarxe2x80x99.
The new Verbena was discovered by the Inventor in 1997 as a naturally-occurring branch mutation of an unnamed Verbena hybrida seedling selection in a greenhouse in Venhuizen, The Netherlands. The new Verbena was selected by the Inventor on the basis of its unique flower color and compact growth habit.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by terminal cuttings taken in a controlled environment in Venhuizen, The Netherlands, since the winter of 1998, has shown that the unique features of this new Verbena are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations of asexual reproduction.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of xe2x80x98Kieverstarxe2x80x99. These characteristics in combination distinguish xe2x80x98Kieverstarxe2x80x99 as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. Compact, mounded and outwardly spreading plant habit.
2. Freely branching habit.
3. Dark green leaves; densely foliated.
4. White and dark purple bi-colored flowers.
Plants of the new Verbena differ primarily from plants of the parent in flower color and plant habit.
Plants of the new Verbena can be compared to plants of the cultivar xe2x80x98Kievertriviokxe2x80x99, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 12,970. In side-by-side comparisons conducted in Lompoc, Calif., plants of the new Verbena were not as upright, had smaller flowers and had fewer flowers than plants of the cultivar xe2x80x98Kievertriviokxe2x80x99. In addition, plants of the new Verbena and the cultivar xe2x80x98Kievertriviokxe2x80x99 differ slightly in flower color.